The little hotel lay down the road at the side of the mountain, leaving the actual city underneath.

After moving into each their rooms, Diane and Jason joined Neri and Shalamorn in theirs, only to find them on the balcony, staring down into the valley in wonder.

It was a sunny day. The icicles, hanging from all the beams, and the snow, which covered the mountainsides, every plane and every roof, sparkled so bright, Shalamorn held one flat hand to her forehead, shielding her eyes.

Neri seemed lost of words. Her gaze went from the mountains to the city, to the sea and back again.

Jason smiled. She was barefoot again, of course.

"Well," Shalamorn said when Jason and Diane stepped onto the balcony. "This is something, I have never seen before. Your planet is extraordinary!"

"You don't have frozen water on the Ocean Planet?" Diane asked.

"No," the Queen answered. "The water at home is either in a state of gas, or fluid." She dropped the hand. "I can honestly say, I never expected snow and ice to be so remarkably beautiful."

"Neri," Diane frowned. "You were travelling with Charly to the south. Didn't you see the ice caps?"

Neri shook her head, finally able to speak. "Not like this, Mother."

Diane shot a quick look at Shalamorn, but she didn't seem to mind, that Neri still called Diane Mother.

"There is a lot of amazing things, you can do with snow and ice," Jason said. "Building snowmen, or have a good snowball fight. And you can do all sorts of sport, like skiing, sledging and ice skating."

"What's skiing?" Shalamorn wanted to know.

"Well, that might sound weird," Jason answered. "But you buckle on a flat piece of wood on each of your feet and go down the hillside. We used to go on skiing holidays when Brett and I were younger."

Shalamorn laughed. "That does indeed sound a little strange, – and a little dangerous as well."

Jason shrugged. "I guess, it depends on talent, and if you got a good instructor."

"Maybe, you show me?" Neri beamed at him.

"I'd love, too," Jason grinned.

"Well," Diane said with a cushioning tone. "Maybe, you should start with something safer, like ice skating."

"Mum," Jason objected. "You broke your leg by ice skating in that one winter in Falls Creek!"

"Oh," Diane blinked. "I totally forgot about that."

Shalamorn smiled and shook her head. "You humans," she grinned with a wondrous expression. "You startle me every day anew. I will never understand, what it is, that makes you do all these dangerous sports like football, climbing or skydiving."

"Ah, well," Jason tried to explain. "It's a lot of fun. Adrenalin, the excitement,... it makes you feel alive."

"For many people," Diane added. "It means proving something to themselves. That they can be brave and full of courage. To get the feeling of being able to overcome any challenge."

"You're are an interesting species," Shalamorn said, still smiling, but in a more thoughtful tone. "Life provides already so many challenges, and still you seek out to face even bigger ones. Never resting, running forward to the next adventure." She sighed. "You have so much potential. I sincerely hope, you will be able to overcome your challenges, so we can walk together in a bright future." She looked at Jason and their eyes met. "I believe, one day, the human race will be one of the greatest in the galaxy."

Jason and Diane exchanged quick looks. "Does that mean," Diane asked curiously, "there are more? More races and species?"

Shalamorn smiled. "Of course, there are. The universe is way too big to be a home for just two intelligent life forms."

"So, you haven't actually met another one?" Jason assumed.

Shalamorn shook her head. "No, we don't. But right now, even two species at one place seem to be more than humans can handle. We should focus on that."

The last sentences naturally put a damper on his enthusiasm, but Jason was still thrilled by the thought of a universe, filled with creatures similar to those in Star Trek, or the Star Wars movies.

"Well," Diane said. "I'm sure, the both of you want to freshen, or better, water up," both aliens smiled at her, "so, we leave you alone now, and we see you at Dinner."

Shalamorn agreed by nodding, and Jason stroke Neri's arm, before he joined his mother, stepping out of the suite.

"Dinner with the President of the Global Union," Diane murmured and grimaced at Jason. "An informal Meet & Greet, eating cheese and crackers, with a bunch of know-it-alls, which I usually love to complain about." She shook her head in disbelief. "I will never get my head around this."

Jason grinned and followed her down the floor to their own rooms.